Sand Point NAS

Lt. Thorson, pilot, and Lt. Shook, copilot, were scheduled for a local 2 ½ hour training flight in P4Y-2 registered 59695 at 0930LT. Due to marginal VFR conditions, they were briefed to conduct GCA runs and remain in the local pattern until the weather improved. The pilots completed the engine run-up and the take-off checklist (inadvertently missing the flaps). the tower informed the aircraft that the field was VFR and cleared the aircraft for take-off. The aircraft became airborne just prior to reaching the end of the runway in a near level attitude, no more than one to two feet in the air. As it passed the end of the runway and over the waters edge, a drop of about 10 feet, the loss of ground effect caused it to settle immediately. The aircraft settled to the water at full power about 300 feet from the end of the 5,000 foot runway. The aircraft planed on the main gear and belly and settled to a stop about 5,000 yards past the point of initial impact. An orderly ditching procedure followed. All personnel were out of the aircraft in approximately 45 seconds and in life rafts shortly thereafter. The aircraft sank in 175 feet of water in approximately 2 ½ minutes. The personnel were rescued by the NAS Seattle crash boat about 4 minutes later. Lt. Shook and one crewman received minor injuries while vacating the aircraft. During the run-out on the water, the bomb bay doors ripped open and one bomb bay tank was torn loose from the aircraft. All propeller blades were slightly bent from impact with the water. No other damage is believed to have occurred to the aircraft. Salvage operations commenced on August 28, 1956, and the aircraft was raised to the surface on August 31, 1956. However, a shackle pin to the hoisting sling broke while attempting to tow the aircraft ashore and the aircraft again sank to a depth of 210 feet. Lines had been secured to the two inboard engines and the engines broke off at the mounts when the sling shackle pin gave way. Further efforts to salvage the aircraft were abandoned as uneconomical.
Source:
http://www.memorieshop.com/Seattle/LakeWashington/PB4Y-2.html

Crashed in unknown circumstances 6,5 miles north of Sand Point NAS while on a flight from Great Falls (Montana) to McChord. Crew fate remains unknown.

On December 10, 1946, six Curtis Commando R5C transport planes carrying more than 200 U.S. Marines leave San Diego en route to Seattle. The aircraft, flying entirely by instruments at an altitude of 9,000 feet, encounter heavy weather over southwest Washington. Four turn back, landing at the Portland Airport; one manages to land safely in Seattle, but the sixth plane, carrying 32 Marines, vanishes. Search-and-rescue aircraft, hampered by continuing bad weather, are unable to fly for a week and ground searches prove fruitless. After two weeks, the search for the missing aircraft is suspended. The Navy determines that the aircraft was blown off course by high winds and flew into the side of Mount Rainier (14,410 feet). In July 1947, a ranger at Mount Rainier National Park spots wreckage on South Tahoma Glacier. Search parties examine the debris and confirm that it came from the missing plane. Four weeks later, the bodies are found high on the face of the glacier, but extremely hazardous conditions force authorities to abandon plans to remove them for burial. The 32 U.S. Marines remain entombed forever on Mount Rainier. In 1946, it was the worst accident, in numbers killed aboard an aircraft, in United States aviation history and remains Mount Rainier’s greatest tragedy.
Crew:
Maj Robert V. Reilly, pilot,
Lt Col Alben C. Robertson, copilot,
M/Sgt Wallace J. Slonina, crew chief.
Passengers:
M/Sgt Charles F. Criswell,
Pvt Duane R. Abbott,
Pvt Robert A. Anderson,
Pvt Joe E. Bainter,
Pvt Leslie R. Simmons Jr.,
Pvt Harry K. Skinner,
Pvt Lawrence E. Smith,
Pvt Buddy E. Snelling,
Pvt Bobby J. Stafford,
Pvt William D. St. Clair,
Pvt Walter J. Stewart,
Pvt John C. Stone,
Pvt Albert H. Stubblefield,
Pvt William R. Sullivan,
Pvt Chester E. Taube,
Pvt Harry L. Thompson Jr.,
Pvt Duane S. Thornton,
Pvt Keith K. Tisch,
Pvt Eldon D. Todd,
Pvt Richard P. Trego,
Pvt Charles W. Truby,
Pvt Harry R. Turner,
Pvt Ernesto R. Valdovin,
Pvt Gene L. Vremsak,
Pvt William E. Wadden,
Pvt Donald J. Walker,
Pvt Gilbert E. Watkins,
Pvt Duane E. White,
Pvt Louis A. Whitten.
Source:
http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&file_id=7820